In Karachi recently for Cardamom’s ambitious undertaking, on the theme of Partition and identity, ‘Lines of Control’ – a three-exhibition series held in London, Dubai and Karachi – Nasar spoke to Newsline about art from South Asia making waves in the global market and Green Cardamom’s role in promoting and selling it.
I continue to receive calls from young aspiring writers, mostly from smaller towns, who tell me that they, like the protagonist of the novel, have started a ‘blue register’ of their own to record their la likhaee (non-writings). I have strongly felt that the novel does have the potential to bring about a deeply transforming effect on some, let us say ‘vulnerable’ type of readers. As regards the response of the writer community, well, it ranges from honest critical appreciation to hushed indifference to the occasional barbed one-liners like ‘I hate all types of Baghs,’ ‘I would rather call it Kala Bagh’ or even unprintable stuff.
“Normally, the government agencies do not refuse to hand over the land for regularisation of katchi abadis, if the land is not required for any operational purpose or is not on a hazardous location,” says Kaushif Gulzar Shaikh, director general of the Sindh Katchi Abadi Authority.
“Katchi abadis are not an aberration. If someone constructs a house on the footpath, that is an encroachment and thus, an aberration. But katchi abadis are a phenomenon,” says Tasneem Siddiqui, former director general, SKAA.
One who was above mundane things like protocols and wealth, a man of integrity, humility and intellect, Justice Sabihuddin Ahmed will be missed. His death comes as a great loss to Pakistan’s judiciary and to all those who knew him. In fact, at the Sindh High Court, senior lawyers say that for the first time even the otherwise composed judges were unable to control their sentiments and wept during his reference.
Iqbal Bano’s death is a grim reminder of the fact that the true practitioners of classical music are dying, as is the golden era of music in the country.
Tucked away on the first floor of Hot Spot, an ice cream parlour in Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium, is Aysha Raja Alam’s quaint and novel bookshop – The Last Word. The little retreat shelves a small but selective collection of the latest English writings by international as well as local authors. A prolific reader herself, Alam is aggressively promoting critically acclaimed bestsellers as well as exquisite coffee table books.
Pakistan on Twitter
Loading ...
